And don’t you forget it: Pride was a riot.
Last year, COVID-19 could not cancel Pride, and the celebration went virtual, was illuminated – it carried on. Closer to the streets, the people got back to basics. Some of us called upon the spirit of Pride and the result, at least here in San Francisco, was the 2020 People’s March & Rally organized by drag star Juanita MORE! and community artivist Alex U. Inn (look ’em up). Who needs a big, corporate parade down Market Street, after all, when all ya got is all ya need: you and yours.
A second People’s March & Rally down Polk Street to San Francisco Civic Center was held this year – one more and it’s a new tradition! – on June 27, and I had the privilege and pleasure of covering the day for the Bay Area Reporter, which has been serving the San Francisco Bay Area queer community since 1971. I so enjoyed witnessing the outdoor gathering and chatting with neighbors and strangers bound by this shared pursuit of happiness, and meeting members of and learning about the Alexander Hamilton Post 448 of the American Legion; the Freedom Socialist Party; GLBTQ+ Asian Pacific Alliance, or GAPA; Gay American Indians; the Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club; and the International Federation of Professional & Technical Engineers Local 21, among others.
Cheers to the first of many assignments, to l’amour, and to our community’s liberation.
Please, take a moment to make a donation to the GoFundMe set up by community organizers to fund this grassroots event, #SanFrancisco. We gotta start putting our money where our mouths claim to be.
The time to unite to fight is now.
King of Cups 